SS stallage

[mikefromnola]

My first post after much lurking here and at crossfit.com. Thank you, Mark, for Starting Strength, as well as all the other coaching and info you have spread out online. I pick up Starting Strength every day and learn something new, though my wife bitches about it being on the bathroom floor constantly!

I'm 37, been on the novice program since Dec 12th with one week off in the middle. I have a couple questions. I feel like I'm stuck at 220 on my squats. My monday session I did 1 set of 5 at 220, then 2 reps and got smashed, failed forwards. Today, one good set again, then 3 and fail. I did 2 more singles at 220, then backed down to 215 and did 5. I feel like I'm stuck, should I reset lower and work back up, or just keep on at it at 220 till I finish 3 sets and keep going from there?

One more, about my press. I'm at 107.5, and I feel my left elbow straying out to the side on the way up, and the way up is slow. I think I start correctly, push my head through and lock out correctly. Where should the elbows track, facing forward all the way through, or is it ok for some sideways kickout?

Thanks in advance for the help, and also for the program. I have gone from 150 at 5'10 to 172 today! Sweet!

[Mark Rippetoe]

Standard question in this case: how long are you waiting between sets?

[mikefromnola]

Thanks very much for the reply. I'm waiting a good bit on the work sets, but I'm not timing them, 3-5 minutes i would guess. I wait til my heart stops galloping in my chest and before my legs freeze up, which i think i can feel. I really need to bust 220, cuz i know that's a light weight. I also want to make sure i can bust 225 in less than 3 workouts as well. I am hitting the milk and cheeseburgers, by the way.

[Mark Rippetoe]

That's the problem. Wait about 7-8 minutes between sets and see what happens.

[SixtySix]

I'm 32 and I started SS in December as well. I had a similar problem, stalling out a little earlier than I thought I should. Turns out that I wasn't eating enough calories. I'm drinking a gallon of skim milk a day now (I know it's supposed to be whole milk, but I've still got a gut I'm trying to work off) and I blew through my previous stalling point.

Drinking that milk gave my body what it needed to recover. Give it a try if you aren't already.

[TyphoidYellow]

I'm 32 and I started SS in December as well. I had a similar problem, stalling out a little earlier than I thought I should. Turns out that I wasn't eating enough calories. I'm drinking a gallon of skim milk a day now (I know it's supposed to be whole milk, but I've still got a gut I'm trying to work off) and I blew through my previous stalling point.

Drinking that milk gave my body what it needed to recover. Give it a try if you aren't already.

Reducing or compromising your dietary fat intake won't help you lose body fat. Losing body fat comes from a calorie deficit, but your body fat % will become less noticeable if you start packing on some muscle. Since you're on novice progression, taking in a gallon of whole milk would be ideal, but if you're touchy about your weight, then a more proper course of action would be to switch over to a gallon of whole milk while cutting out any unnecessary food products. If you're enamored with solid food, then you may have to cut your milk intake in order to achieve the caloric intake level you desire, which I suppose for you is only moderately above maintenance level.

But yeah, nutrition is a key part of making gains, and it shouldn't be anyone's Achilles' heel. Most people who make a conscious effort to eat properly are able to meet their carb and protein intake, but they end up compromising their fat intake which is just as important.